Vet Boarding vs In-Home Care for Pets With Medical Needs

Start with your vet, not the calendar

Maybe your senior dog takes heart pills twice a day, your cat was just diagnosed with diabetes, or your dog came home from surgery last week and your trip is coming up. The first call is to your vet. Ask whether your pet is stable enough to be cared for at home, what needs watching, and whether the clinic boards patients that need medical care.

Be clear about what a sitter can do. Danny's Pet Care gives medication as pills, liquid or mixed into food, and says on our pet sitter page that we regularly work with older pets and special care instructions. We do not list injections. If your pet needs shots, IV fluids or hands-on treatment, plan around a vet.

If your vet's clinic boards patients, ask a few practical questions before you book: who checks on pets overnight, whether you can bring your pet's own food and bedding, how the staff will update you, and what happens if your pet's condition changes while you are away.

Diabetic pets and insulin

Cornell's veterinary college calls insulin a mainstay of diabetes treatment. It says most dogs start on insulin injections twice a day, around their feeding times. For cats, Cornell says injections under the skin about every 12 hours have long been the standard of care, though newer oral medicines may suit some cats. Cornell stresses a steady routine: the same diet at the same time every day.

Cornell also says dogs who are ill when diagnosed may need to be hospitalized, and that finding the right dose takes trial and error, with blood glucose checks along the way. A pet that was just diagnosed, or whose dose is still being adjusted, is often a better fit for a vet hospital stay. Cornell advises owners not to change a cat's insulin dose without first talking with the vet, and to contact the vet if a diabetic dog skips its morning meal.

Low blood sugar is the emergency to know. Cornell lists signs in dogs such as being very sleepy, resisting activity, tremors, trouble walking and collapse, and in cats weakness, lethargy, vomiting, poor coordination and seizures. Because Danny's Pet Care does not list injections among the medication it gives, ask your vet whether the clinic boards diabetic patients, or whether it can suggest someone trained to give insulin.

Recovering from surgery

Recovery needs vary by surgery, so your vet's discharge sheet comes first. As one example, the ASPCA's after-surgery instructions for spay and neuter patients ask owners to limit running, jumping and play during recovery, keep the pet from licking the incision, and check the incision site. They say lethargy lasting more than 24 hours after surgery, diarrhea or vomiting are not normal and the clinic should hear about them.

The ASPCA also notes that a pet coming home from the clinic may smell different to other pets in the household, which can lead to fights, so be ready to keep pets apart for a few days. In-home care may work when your pet is stable and the instructions are things a careful sitter can follow, such as leash-only potty breaks and keeping a cone on. If your pet should not be alone overnight, our guide to drop-in visits vs overnight pet sitting compares the two.

Senior pets

Cornell's Riney Canine Health Center notes that older dogs, and dogs in general, do better with a predictable routine, and that many senior dogs prefer set times for important things like meals. It also says dogs with cognitive changes may resist new places and new people. For a senior with stable conditions, care at home often keeps life closer to normal.

Home care still takes some setup. Cornell suggests blocking off unsafe areas such as stairways, where a dog could stumble and fall, and using a support harness to help some older dogs walk. In a DC rowhouse with steep stairs, tell your sitter which floors your senior should stay on, where the harness is kept, and how your dog gets outside safely.

A vet hospital can be a hard place for an older pet that is not sick. The Feline Veterinary Medical Association says long exposure to unfamiliar places, sounds and smells, and being close to other animals, increases a cat's distress during a hospital stay, and its standards suggest owners bring blankets or towels from home. Our guide to in-home pet sitting vs boarding covers the general trade-offs.

What to write down for anyone caring for your pet

Whichever option you choose, put the medical plan in writing. Our post on what to put in your pet sitter's instructions covers feeding, behavior and home access. For a pet with medical needs, add:

• Each medicine's name and what it is for.
• The dose and timing exactly as your vet prescribed, copied from the label.
• How your pet takes it: in a treat, mixed into food, or by mouth.
• How to store it, following the label or your pharmacist. Cornell notes that insulin must be kept from getting too cold or too hot.
• What to do if a dose is missed, spit out or vomited: call your vet before giving more.
• What to do if your pet refuses food, and which signs your vet wants reported right away.
• Your vet's name and number and the nearest 24-hour emergency hospital.

When in-home care is the wrong fit

In-home care is not the safe choice for every pet. A pet that needs injections, IV fluids, oxygen, drains or bandage changes, frequent overnight checks, or a treatment plan that is still being worked out belongs where a veterinary team can step in. So does any pet with new or worsening symptoms: that pet needs an exam before anyone plans a trip around it.

For a stable pet, the next step is paperwork. Our client forms include a Petsitting Form that asks about your pet's medical condition and your vet, and asks for your consent for us to take your pet to your vet in an emergency. Our guide to a pet emergency plan while you are away covers the rest. Then read about dog sitting or pet sitting and book a meet-and-greet.